As a new father, I found The New York Times story on overbuying baby stuff of interest. Apart from some things (like a stroller) we received as baby shower gifts, we bought everything just when we needed it.
Here is a highly personal list of things we found useful (you will notice that I disagree with some of the items that the Times thinks is unnecessary):
Five-ounce Bottles: New-borns sometimes drink only an ounce or two of formula. It is very difficult mixing half an ounce in an eight or sixteen ounce bottle.
Swings: I first bought one and found that both the boys liked it, so I got another one. The swings are a lifesaver and we owe them many a night’s sleep.
Crib: We put both the babies in one crib initially. Now, they are too big and tend to wake each other up. I will wait and see if I need another crib.
Mobile: I cannot believe that we bought a $100 mobile, but it was worth every penny. The boys still enjoy it for hours on end. A cheaper mobile might have worked, but we don’t know that for sure.
Obvious stuff: Blankets, diapers, stroller(s), car seats, bath tubs (we did not want them peeing in our kitchen sink!), clothes (don’t buy too many new clothes as they overgrow them so fast), rechargeable batteries (to operate the swing, mobile etc.)
I also think that the following things are useless:
Nursing Pillow: Bought it and we used it once or twice.
Snugli: I see many parents with their babies very happy in a snugli, but both my boys hate it (I think they feel cramped).
Bottle Warmer: We just mix formula as needed by mixing warm water from an electric kettle.
Bottle sterilizer: We have one and we used it a lot, but I am still dubious about whether it is really needed.
Baby Monitor: We received one as a present, but since we can hear our boys crying a mile away, it still stays in the box.
Do you have tips for new parents-to-be? Let’s hear them in the comments section!
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7 responses so far ↓
1 Sean // Jan 16, 2006 at 6:29 am
We’ve got two young kids. It helps to have friends with kids, since we end up swapping clothes and lending toys and such.
The must haves are the swing and a bouncer (the wire frame with cloth stretched over it and a vibrating device at the feet). We started both our kids out in a pack-and-play that had a built in bassinet.
We have two cribs, the first one was around $400 new including the change table, the second one we got for $20 at a garage sale. The sad part is that it’s just as nice.
We got a mobile as a gift but it didn’t do much for our boys.
We have the two sizes of bottles now that our kids are bigger, but my wife nursed so our needs were different than yours.
And, to put this back on a financial topic, start your RESP early
Sean
2 David // Jan 16, 2006 at 7:55 am
Great post.
My boys are past their infant years but I remember that period well.
A couple thoughts:
1. If you are buying disposable diapers, try buying the ‘MC’ brand at Dominion/A&P. They cost ~$20/jumbo package (deal!) but better yet, you get 1 Baby Bonus point for every $20 spent. Get 10 points and they mail you a $20 gift certificate. (See http://www.freshobsessed.com/ourPrograms/bbc). At one point I had 2 boys in diapers concurrently and was getting said gift certificates at a ridiculous rate.
2. Another item we found indispensible was a fold-away play pen. This was great for taking on family excursions and also when my wife or I was cooking and wanted to keep an eye on our son during his ‘I eat everything I cruise/crawl to’ phase.
3 Canadian Capitalist // Jan 16, 2006 at 12:20 pm
Sean and David: Thanks for your comments.
A friend of ours was just mentioning that a bouncer is really helpful. We’ll have to check that out.
Our boys are just starting to move, so we are investigating a play pen. I’ll check out the A&P diapers. I shop at Costco and the diapers are fairly cheap.
4 Big Cajun Man // Jan 17, 2006 at 1:32 pm
Well, I agree that the Bottle Warmer is a bit excessive, but we bought one because we were going to be travelling and well, it was a god send, because the hotel room didn’t really have anywhere where we could get boiled water.
My son is now 10 months and still enjoys formula from Powder (which we mix). We used premixed with his sisters, but are getting really CHEAP in our old age.
–C8j
5 Proud mommy of twins // Feb 10, 2006 at 1:40 pm
If there is anything I swear by, it would be the television monitors. Since my twins were born prematurly, i was paranoid. I could rest easier just knowing I could see them both when I wanted. To this day, the monitors are always on, as already we have had one girl climb out of her crib. Now we can catch her when she attempts it again.
6 Canadian Capitalist // Feb 14, 2006 at 7:51 pm
Thanks for the comments Big Cajun and Proud Mommy.
Also, I recently read in Time magazine that those Baby Einstein videos are not a good idea for babies under 2 years.
7 SALSEML // May 10, 2006 at 12:32 pm
Too late now but breast feeding reduces all requirments for bottle warmers and any other thing connected to it.
Videos are good attention grabbers when kids get older 1.5 - 2.yrs.
Also being a techie guy the internet starts to take over as a great tool at 1.5. Check out the mulitude of kids stuff - PBS kids, CBC. Boobah is especially great for kids learning keyboard use.
The best winter tip, put velcro on kids sleeves with a patch on their gloves. tehy will never come off.
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